‘This is no place for a lady. Let me go in and bring him down to you. You can meet in the carriage.’ As sorry as she felt for putting Giles in this uncomfortable position she was not going to let him change her mind. ‘Your presence will make things difficult. He will feel constrained. Perhaps even obliged. I don’t want that.’ He muttered something unflattering under his breath. ‘I think I am a damned fool. I will give you five minutes, then I will come up and find you.’ ‘Ten.’ If she could not get her business done in ten minutes it would not get done at all. ‘You’ve done your part, Giles. You settled things with His Grace, and you found Monsieur Deval. This is my part to play.’ ‘It was little enough. I simply looked where I found him in the first place.’ He rubbed at the back of his head, knocking his hat askew in his concern. ‘You always were a stubborn woman, Claire. I can only hope you are not making another mistake.’ She hoped so too. She pulled her arm free.
